We Are the Music Makers (WATMM) forum raise nearly five times the amount needed to purchase test pressing of 'Caustic Window'

A Kickstarter campaign to collectively own a copy of an Aphex Twin album that only reached the test pressing stage has raised over $40,000 (£24,000).

Working with the artist and his label, users of the We Are the Music Makers (WATMM) forum plan to buy a £5,000 test pressing of ‘Caustic Window’ from 1994, distributing digital copies to those who support the campaign.

The group launched their campaign last Monday (April 10) after a British record collector announced they were selling the record for $13,500 (£8,050). The seller claims that the release is one of five test pressings that were never released and that he was given the record by the electronic musician’s own Rephlex Records label in 1994. The seller claims Rephlex will never press the album itself.

So far $41,710 (£24, 930) has been pledged to the group, who plan to put the record up for auction on eBay. Once it is sold, a third of the profits will go to Aphex Twin (real name Richard James) and his Rephlex label as a royalty payment, a third will go to the Kickstarter contributors, and a third to a charity that they will all vote on.

Once the auction is complete and payment received, everyone will get to download their digital version of the LP.

Aphex Twin’s last full album was 2001’s ‘Drukqs’, although James has since released a number of EPs and recordings under various aliases.